MARCH / APRIL 2025
Location ISLAY SINGLE MALT SCOTCH / LA FLOR DOMINICANA / ORLANDO "EL DUQUE" HERNÁNDEZ / CIGAR FESTIVALS / RATINGS
editorials MARCH / APRIL 2025
25 5 TO TRY ISLAY SINGLE MALT SCOTCH Peated whisky's smoky, briny allure drives fans to the Islay region of Scotland. Here's a primer on some of the top expressions along with a suggested cigar accompaniment.
26 LAGAVULIN 16 /
FUENTE THE OPUS X SOCIETY BY MANNY IRIARTE
27 ARDBEG AN OA /
UNDERCROWN 10
28 LAPHROAIG 10 /
COHIBA RIVIERA
30 PORT CHARLOTTE 10 HEAVILY PEATED / THE WISE MAN MADURO
32 GORDON & MACPHAIL DISCOVERY CAOL ILA 13 YEAR / HVC PAN CALIENTE
35 LA FLOR DOMINICANA Litto Gómez has an authentic, inspiring rags-toriches story that starts with a derailed career as a teenaged soccer star, which leads to an illustrious run as a dishwasher, a night club owner and a jeweler before he landed at the top of the cigar industry.
68 EL DUQUE Orlando Hernández won 90 games with four Major League teams and ended his career with four World Series rings. And that's not even the most exciting thing he's done in his life. We talk cigars with the ex-Yankee.
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features MARCH / APRIL 2025
14 LETTER FROM THE PUBLISHER
16 FEEDBACK
18 WHAT’S BURNIN’
40 SMOKING HOT CIGAR SNOB ON LOCATION
A LOOK BACK AT SOME OF OUR MOST STRIKING ON-LOCATION PHOTO SHOOTS IN RECENT HISTORY.
53 RATINGS
72 X SCOREBOARD
74 INSTAGRAM SCOREBOARD
76 EVENTS 76 PURO SABOR FESTIVAL 82 PROCIGAR FESTIVAL 90 THE GREAT SMOKE 92 AGING ROOM LA BOHEME LAUNCH PARTY 94 THE DAVIDOFF DIFFERENCE AT COCO CIGARS 96 NEPTUNE CIGARS GRAND OPENING 98 CIGAR CIRCUS GRAND OPENING
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ISLAY SINGLE MALT SCOTCH IF SCOTLAND’S WHISKY REGIONS WERE A FAMILY, ISLAY WOULD BE THE BOLD, REBELLIOUS, AND STUBBORN UNCLE. THIS ISLAND OFF SCOTLAND’S WESTERN COAST PRODUCES SOME OF THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE AND SOUGHT-AFTER SINGLE MALTS IN THE WORLD, CHARACTERIZED BY THEIR MEDICINAL, PEATY, AND MARITIME PROFILES. ISLAY’S NINE ACTIVE DISTILLERIES HARNESS CENTURIES-OLD TRADITIONS, LOCAL PEAT BOGS, AND THE SALTY SEA AIR TO CREATE WHISKIES THAT CHALLENGE AND DELIGHT THE PALATE. HERE ARE FIVE EXCEPTIONAL ISLAY EXPRESSIONS AND THE CIGARS THAT STAND UP TO THEIR POWERFUL PERSONALITIES.
by Erik Calviño
LA FLOR DOMINICANA IN FULL BLOOM
FROM BUDDING SOCCER STAR IN FÚTBOL-CRAZED URUGUAY, TO PAWN SHOPS AND NIGHTCLUBS IN MIAMI, LITTO GÓMEZ FOUND A HOME IN THE CIGAR INDUSTRY. AFTER 31 YEARS IN THE GAME, HIS PASSION FOR HIS FAMILY BUSINESS AND THE CIGARS THEY CREATE IS ONLY GETTING STRONGER. BY STEVE MILLER PHOTOGRAPHY BY NATALIA AGUILERA
Location
By Ivan Ocampo Photography by Limited Edition
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48 CIGARS
puro sabor Festival 2025 by Jamilet Calviño
he 2025 edition of Puro Sabor in January brought together fans of Nicaraguan tobacco from all over the globe. Consumers, retailers, distributors, and manufacturers visited tobacco fields and cigar factories as well as enjoying cultural experiences and, in the evening, incredible parties. The Nicaraguan Chamber of Tobacco, the organization that hosts the event, is made up of member companies that include Padrón, Oliva, Plasencia, AJ Fernandez, Drew Estate, My Father, Joya de Nicaragua, PENSA, Victor Calvo, and Scandinavian Tobacco Group. Every year, we select tours that will highlight the best of the festival while giving you an insider’s view of the action. Festival attendees land in Managua, spend a day in Granada, then head north to Estelí, tobacco country.
Day 1 We arrived in Granada, registered and secured our luxe swag bag filled with top notch goodies. The bag itself was leather, made by Ortez Design. Inside were festival-exclusive cigars, premium accessories, a white guayabera, and a bottle of Flor de Caña rum.
Julián Cuevas, Ahmed Carus and Hiram Díaz
We set out on a boat tour of Lake Nicaragua, weaving through the lush islets while keeping an eye out for the local wildlife, mostly monkeys. The heat was stifling but ice-cold Toña beer kept us refreshed and in excellent spirits. Lunch on an islet featured a traditional dish of vigorón, followed by cigars from Karen Berger, Villiger, and RomaCraft. Back on land, we headed to the Convento de San Francisco for dinner, where Granada’s mayor, Gladys Medina, welcomed the international group. Cigars in hand—Don Pepín García and CAO Fasa—we enjoyed a folkloric performance. The Flor de Caña straight from the barrel was a nice touch.
Gladys Medina, Mayor of Granada and Alejandro Martínez Cuenca
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Danny Valen and Christopher Alonso
Lorena Gámez, Suyapa Roque and Jennifer Velázquez
Victor and Victor Calvo Jr.
Bernie Prett, Jenny Lynn, Melvin Griffin and Jesse Saglio
Day 2 On Wednesday morning, we departed Granada, Estelíbound. Upon arrival, we were hosted for lunch by Victor Calvo, who paired his cigars with a spread of traditional Nicaraguan fare. Next, we visited Tabolisa 1, Oliva Cigars’ principal factory, where father and son Guido and Fred Vandermarliere welcomed us in their stunning VIP lounge before leading a tour through this facet of their operation. The evening took us to J.C. Newman’s PENSA factory for dinner, where we were welcomed by the mayor of Estelí, Francisco Ramon Valenzuela Blandon and JC Newman’s Eric Newman. Fireworks, live music, and a surprise performance from Don Pepín García himself made for a memorable night.
Tabolisa 1 Rolling Floor (Oliva Cigars)
Pedro Ramos, Walter Saes, Indiana Ortez and Eduardo Díaz
Ernesto Milanés and Jaime García
Fred Vandermarliere and Juán Martínez
Evelyn Moncada
Dennis Carter, Reno Eiranova, Jordan García and Trey Oliva
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